Poverty Is Sexist – ONE’s Campaign To Stand With African Women and Girls

ONE’s research has proved the following areas need improvement in Nigeria:

A woman in Nigeria is 140 times more likely to die bringing a new life into the world than a woman in Norway.

More than 4.96 million girls in Nigeria are out of school.

Nigeria has one of the lowest rates of employed women (as a percent of total population) among countries with similar gross national incomes.

On September 25th, the new Global Goals for Sustainable Development, were adopted by world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly in New York. These new goals will define the next chapter of global development. If world leaders get it right, and ensure women and girls are put first, it could make us the great generation to end extreme poverty.

Dr Sipho S. Moyo, ONE’s Africa Executive Director, said:

“African leaders have set an example by standing with women and girls. World leaders must follow their lead and invest in empowering women and girls, and set us on the path to a future with less poverty for women and their communities and far less inequality all around. If they opt for business as usual we shall lose this once in a generation opportunity. As leaders meet at the United Nations, they must ensure they help bring about a more fair, just and equal world. African leaders must ensure that the SDG’s implementation strategies retain women’s empowerment as a central goal in line with their June AU Summit declaration. Working with organizations like the African Development Bank and others we must make our continent the example that everyone follows with these Global Goals.”

While it’s up to leaders to do the right thing, it is up to every citizen of every country to make sure leaders do what they promise. Pledges for action are only as good as how accountable people who make the pledges really are, and ONE, our members and millions of people will be making sure leaders keep to their word.

So far ONE’s Poverty is Sexist campaign has helped keep the pressure up. Successful African Union and G7 Summits earlier this year have seen leaders make serious commitments to implementing policies to boost women and girls chances for a better life. ONE has received support by high profile women including singer and entrepreneur Beyoncé, COO of Facebook Sheryl Sandberg, actress Meryl Streep and Angelique Kidjo and other leading women from the worlds of business, arts, politics and activism, who wrote an open letter to world leaders demanding action. They’ve also had hundreds of thousands of actions from members, including tens of thousands of #strengthies – where people pose in the style of ‘Rosie the Riveter’, petitions signings and many more.

Now ONE is making a call and asking you to lend your voice to this crucial campaign.